Ten-Year Review of the EPR Programme: continuation
endorsed by the
Fifth Ministerial Conference (Kiev, May 2003)
At the Fifth Ministerial Conference
“Environment for Europe” in Kiev, Ukraine,
21-23 May 2003, the Ministers welcomed the Report
on environmental policy in transition: Lessons learned
from ten years of UNECE environmental performance
reviews (ECE/CEP/98) and confirmed that the UNECE
programme of environmental performance reviews (EPR),
which had been initiated at the Lucerne Ministerial
Conference, had made it possible to assess the effectiveness
of the efforts of countries with economies in transition
to manage the environment, and to offer the Governments
concerned tailor-made recommendations on improving
environmental management to reduce pollution load,
to better integrate environmental policies into
sectoral policies and to strengthen cooperation
with the international community.
The Ministers supported the implementation
of the Report’s
recommendations. They also reaffirmed their
support for the EPR programme of UNECE as an important
instrument for countries with economies in transition,
and decided that the programme should continue.
Objectives of the EPR Programme
Environmental Performance Reviews
(EPRs) assess a country’s efforts to reduce
its overall pollution burden and manage its natural
resources; to integrate environmental and socio-economic
policies; and to strengthen cooperation with the
international community. The objectives of EPRs
are
· To assist countries in transition
to improve their management of the environment by
establishing baseline conditions and making concrete
recommendations for better policy implementation
and performance;
· To promote a continuous dialogue among
UNECE member States;
· To stimulate greater involvement of the
public in discussions and decision-making for the
environment and sustainable development;
· To integrate environmental policies into
sectoral policies and to further integrate health
aspects into environmental performance;
· To broaden the socio-economic dimension
of environmental policies;
· To harmonize environmental conditions and
policies throughout the region; and
· To contribute to sustainable development.